Stress Inoculation Training (SIT)

• Stress Inoculation Training (SIT) is a stress management method which helps a person develop coping skills and then exposes them to moderate amounts of stress so they practise their skills.
• the aim of SIT is to protect us against stressors before they happen. SIT does this by exposing us to small amounts of stress in a safe environment. we learn the skills needed to cope with this stress and apply them when we encounter bigger stressors in the future. this is the principle of stress 'inoculation' - giving us protection.
• SIT is divided into 3 phases - 1. Cognitive preparation (conceptualisation) 2. skills training and practise 3. application and follow through. There is usually overlap between the phases and clients sometimes have to work backwards to an earlier phase before moving forwards again.
• phase 1 - cognitive preparation (conceptualisation)

  • the client and therapist identify and understand the stressors faced by client.
  • this relationship is important as it helps them work together.
  • the client is encouraged to relive stressful situations and ask themselves what was stressful, how did I try to cope etc
  • client then develops a more realistic understanding of what makes them stressed and reframe the stressors as challenges rather than threats
• phase 2 - skills acquisition

  • client is taught skills to cope with their stressful situations (e.g. time management, relaxation etc)
  • the choice of skills is tailored to the clients specific needs - but is usually 'coping self-statements' such as "youre in control dont worry". these replace previous anxious thoughts.
  • client practises these skills in a safe environment e.g. role-playing with therapist.
• phase 3- application and follow through

  • client conducts personal experiments to transfer their skills into the real world. these are homework tasks set by therapist so they can apply their coping skills in situations that become increasingly stressful.
  • they then discuss their experience in therapy and work on skill development if necesessary. as their control over their anxiety increases, they rely less on therapist
  • client learns to view setbacks as temporary learning opportunities, not failures. therapist helps client see success is down to their own skills. this helps prevent relapse
• a strength of SIT is that it has supporting research. a study of uni students who scored highly on measures of stress. they had a short course of SIT and they showed lower levels of stress after the SIT compared to a control group. this shows that a practical and manageable course of SIT can help students cope with stress and improve academic performance
• a weakness of SIT is that it is very complicated. it uses lots of different cognitive and behavioural techniques to target a wide variety of stressors and situations. these are unlikely to all be equally effective, but we cannot pinpoint exactly what about SIT works. perhaps SIT is more than just positive thinking - it includes skill acquisition, this means the benefits of SIT could be achieved more easily
• a strength of SIT is that it has practical uses in meeting clients needs as it is a flexible therapy as it includes a wide range of stress management techniques. it is used for individuals, groups and different settings, even online. this makes it practically useful as it can be applied to new and unpredictable stressful situations.
• a weakness of SIT is it requires time, effort and money. clients have to go through a long programme which requires high levels of motivation and commitment and so therefore SIT is not a quick and easy fix